Hi all
cleaned the oven like a typical male. The result was not good. OK
ladies you can stop laughing now.
Had to clean up the rings after cooking, seems that Argentium does
not like roast beef residue etc.
Will now get another oven for the Argentium.
But interestingly put on my gem setting glasses to clean the rings
up wow was I lazy or what? Learned a big lesson here. Found scratches
and marks I did not see with my normal bench glasses.
Now these rings are perfectly polished and wow does Argentium shine
or what.
Doing the next step this week bezel set stones and reticulation.
Already got orders for rings in Argentium. Will be posting what
happens I expect what I do with sterling not to work the same way
with Argentium and OK it will stuff up. But I will work out how to do
it. And of course share on Orchid. If I have time after reading
Gerry’s posts, damn homework LOL but so much appreciated. Thanx
Gerry.
Argentium seems hard to reticulate I think people have used too thin
metal I will try with my sterling size 1.5 mm thick by 10 mm wide. If
I stuff it up will cry, swear and scream and get over it. And go back
to sterling for reticulation.
One interesting thing the Argentium easy solder moves a lot slower
than sterling easy and you have to keep the heat up to it to get it
to move. I like this though, could be good for newbies at soldering.
all the best
Richard
One interesting thing the Argentium easy solder moves a lot slower
than sterling easy and you have to keep the heat up to it to get
it to move. I like this though, could be good for newbies at
soldering
Hi Richard, Since AS does not conduct heat the way that SS does, it
makes sense to me that the solder seems to move more slowly to you.
How do you feel that it compares to gold? To me, AS conducts heat
similarly to gold. I have a habit of using a soldering pick to sort
of stroke the solder if it seems sluggish. I feel like it helps break
the surface tension, and help the capillary action.
Cynthia Eid
Argentium seems hard to reticulate [snip] If I stuff it up will
cry, swear and scream and get over it. And go back to sterling for
reticulation.
If you don’t get satisfactory results with Argentium (and I am
betting, without any actual knowledge, that it will not work well,
because I doubt that the germanium will rise to the surface and
pickle out the way copper does) consider going to reticulation silver
instead of sterling. A higher percentage of copper (5%?) means more
contrast in melting point between the interior of the silver and the
copper-depleted “skin” on the outside. so you get better wrinkles,
easier. You can even buy it already depleted (“prepared”)-- or you
can heat without flux 10-15 times, pickling each time and scrubbing
with a fine brass brush every 5 times or so.
Noel
Hi
tired to reticulate a piece of 10 mm wide by 1.5 mm thick did not
work started to clump together.
Ok I have reticulated sterling for years no problems will stick with
sterling for now.
Tomorrow will try making bezels and putting them in rings.
all the best
Richard
I ‘ditto’ Noel’s comments about reticulating AS. It just doesn’t
like to wrinkle, but it does like to break. Now you have a good use
for the regular sterling sheet!
Judy in Kansas, where the wheat crop reports are dismal. This drought is
getting ugly.
Hi all
made a bezel set solitaire today in Argentium. I set the bezel in
the shank and put it on the soldering board bezel down as I do, or
should I say did, with sterling. From what I had read I was sure the
bezel would collapse under the weight of the shank. Bezel was only.5
mm thick. Shank 4 x 2 mm oval comfort fit.
Well the gods be praised it soldered like sterling, no collapse.
Solder moves like 18 kt.
The clean up is so fast and so is the polishing. Clean up with 1200
grit and polish with hyfin. No 600 grit one less sanding step and no
tripoli one less polishing step.
And if that is not “way far kwel (cool)” as my kids said in school.
It is a dead metal.
It went down on the stone, princess cut swaroski cz, and stayed
down.
So Argentium is:
Faster to sand
Faster to polish and
Easier to set than sterling.
And the polish and colour are amazing.
So good of A & E to start making this.
This stuff is so easy to work the “little ratbags from beyond.” AKA
the kids I love to teach will have so much fun with this stuff.
So this week we make up all our sterling and sell it off at
Saturday’s market.
The only sterling I will make is reticulated as I could not
reticulate the Argentium.
Hang on what if I coat it in Firescoff so the Germanium does not get
a chance to eat oxygen? Damn I love a challenge!
all the best
Richard.
Hi all
I doubt that the germanium will rise to the surface and pickle out
the way copper does) consider going to reticulation silver instead
of sterling.
thanx Noel but I have had no problems with reticulating sterling.
Just get a billet and heat it and with careful torch control get
great reticulation.
all the best
Richard.
I 'ditto' Noel's comments about reticulating AS. It just doesn't
like to wrinkle, but it does like to break. Now you have a good
use for the regular sterling sheet!
Reticulation is done with .800 silver. Not sterling. You cannot get
the delicate structures with sterling. You just get heat damaged
surface.
Richard Hart
Actually Richard, I have reticulated sterling. Not deeply, mind you,
but thesurface was wrinkly. Did you have any damage from those
violent storms a while ago? My older daughter had her students in the
safe area for 45 min. No damage, thank goodness!
Judy in KS